BENGALURU: The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Karnataka, has begun the background work for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), mapping 4.08 crore of the total 5.57 crore voters, which constitutes 73.2% of the total electorate.
According to data from the CEO, the mapping was most extensive in Tumakuru (92.05%), followed by Koppal (91.32%) and Udupi (90.12%). The lowest was in the BBMP South constituency (34.22%), followed by the BBMP Central constituency (34.79%).
“We are ready to start the SIR process as soon as the Election Commission of India directs us. The exercise in Karnataka is likely to start from April and work in the background is going on,” sources in the election commission told The New Indian Express.
At the same time, the State Election Commission (SEC) is working on finalising the electoral rolls for elections to the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA). SEC officials said, “We are not involved in SIR. We are working on extending the date from April 6 for the final electoral rolls for GBA elections. This is being done to accommodate the SIR exercise as Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and other staffers will be busy.”
To maintain accuracy, they are comparing electors in the 2025 electoral rolls with that of 2002 to identify additions through progenies. This is to track the dead, those who have shifted or duplicate voters, the officials explained.
“Mapping is a table-top exercise, wherein staffers use the 2002 data as the base for verification. The annual Special Summary Revision (SSR) data is also used to ascertain voters’ details,” an electoral officer said.
BLOs tasked with mapping on the ground
“As per the 2002 SSR, there were 3.5 crore voters and in 2025, there were 5.57 crore voters. If a person continues to be in the same constituency since 2002, then no additional verification is needed. But if one was not present in the 2002 rolls and was found in 2025, then verification has to be done,” the electoral officer explained.
BLOs have been tasked with mapping work on the ground. “They are ascertaining details of all the voters, including their place of stay earlier. As it is a table-top exercise, it requires no documents. It is an ongoing exercise. BLOs have been making calls to people to ascertain their voting details. More calls will be made in the coming days. There is no need to panic as it is a routine exercise,” said the official, requesting anonymity.
As per data, the total number of requests the BLOs received as on March 2, 2026 was 33,506 and number of calls they responded to is 29,478. The pending calls are 2,015 as on March 2, 2026. They have also listed 2,013 electors as not being available.
Till now, global positioning system tracking and digital tools were not being used for mapping and verification. But in the coming days, on the directions of the Election Commission of India, they will be put in play for verification along with the listed 11 documents, to ensure accuracy.